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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: object · board · net · fork · bat · tube · sharp · patient

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. tube — a container
  3. net — after costs
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. sharp — clever
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. board — to get on
  8. fork — in a road
  9. object — an aim
  10. bat — the animal
  11. net — in sport
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. object — to protest
  15. tube — the underground
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. object — a thing
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. net — for catching
  24. sharp — with an edge

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com